SpeedwayMedia.com

Everybody knows that the Nationwide Series should separate itself from the Cup Series. Running companion races with the cup side has had disastrous effects on the finances of most of the 'strictly' Nationwide teams and the sponsors thereof. The Nationwide Series has become the playground for Cup teams and drivers.

Running a companion race for Cup is a good idea. It brings more bang for the buck. Tickets can hold more value for the fans and get people off their butts in front of the TV and out to the tracks. The Cup drivers, obliviously, don't want to sit on their hands between practices, would run anything that has wheels, if they can get to the track.

So...give it to them. People (and sponsors) want to see the Cup guys on the track and don't seem to mind watching them use less precise equipment. The drivers long to race and would love the opportunity as long as its a level playing field. They could run a companion race in just about anything, from Legends to Nationwide, and people will pay to watch. I say put these guys in ARCA series cars, with the same rules as that series, but DO NOT put it in a 'championship' set, nor award any 'points'. Each race is a Victory unto it own. People will still add up the victories and claim their guy won the series, but if there isn't any points, it'll be a moral victory only.

The best thing the Nationwide Series could do is run on tracks that Cup isn't, and get the Cup drivers out of the series championship. The best way to insure that is to make it very difficult for them to get to the track. Nationwide needs to establish its own identity, and start getting noticed again as a watchable series. A Nationwide championship, being won by a Cup regular, is a sad sister to the Cup. As long as the Cup guys keep winning, Nationwide is going to be the red-headed stepchild for sponsors and TV. I still believe that a few Cup guys running a Nationwide race is good for the sport and for the drivers in the Nationwide series, just as a middleweight wrestler learns by going against the heavyweight, just not as a steady diet. It hurts the ego.

If the Nationwide runs separate races, it can get back on its feet, stand tall as a racing series, and start attracting attention that isn't drained off by the Cup's interference. Tracks that are begging for NASCAR sanction (and CUP races) can show their abilities hosting this series. Cup regulars shouldn't be banned from racing this series, but keep the distances far enough away to preclude any championship effort. This will give all the series' in NASCAR a chance to develop and show their own style.